Curriculum Integration Goals and Objectives
Goal: Increase Student Achievement through the effective use of technology.
Objective: As teachers become more proficient in effective technology integration,
students will learn to manipulate available technology to communicate, collaborate and solve
problems.
Objective: Students will learn to use software programs for presentations, and/or exhibits.
Students will be encouraged to use multi-media software.
Objective: Students will continue use of existing software programs (STAR, Accelerated
Reader, Study Island, SuccessMaker) as individualized instruction tools.
Goal: Ensure that students are technology literate by the end of the 8th grade.
Objective: Keyboarding instruction will be moved from the junior high level to the
fourth grade level.
Objective: Students will learn to navigate the Internet to find useful, appropriate
information, then organize, analyze and ethically use that information to solve problems.
Objective: Students will learn to use existing applications to create reports, presentations,
and projects.
Goal: Progress is being made toward fully integrating technology into the curriculum.
Objective: Implement standards for computer literacy, in grades K-12.
Objective: Provide professional development for teachers that will help them infuse
technology into their curriculum.
Curriculum Integration Narrative:
At the present time, USD 225 maintains three computer labs, one in the grade school and two in
the high school, each with 19-20 Dell computers. The district computers operate on a Windows
platform that includes Microsoft Office 2007. All computers are networked and Internet
accessible. All staff members in both the grade school and the high school have a Dell computer
that is networked in conjunction with our GoEduStar student records/grading program. Eight
classrooms have at least one or two computers that are used for student access. The computers
in the classrooms are accessed by students for Accelerated Reader, Study Island, word
processing, Internet research, and learning games or textbook supplemental activities. Our
current student to computer ratio in the high school is less than 2:1 and in the grade school the
ratio is 3:1; however there are still many scheduling issues that come into play with accessing
computers.
The elementary computer lab is used primarily for the SuccessMaker academic program.
Grades K-6 utilize this standards-based curriculum software in the subject areas of math and
reading. This program individualizes instruction and provides built-in assessment and
accountability. Study Island, a standards-based assessment, instruction, and test preparation
program is utilized in this lab as well. During the months of February – May, the elementary lab
is employed for practice and completion of the Kansas State Assessments. In addition, the lab is
used for Internet research and word processing by the older elementary students when scheduling
permits. Our fourth grade room is currently involved in a pilot program involving RM Slate
Tablets for every student. The tablets are being used to access primary sources, complete
scavenger hunts, and research. A summer school program offers keyboarding to those students
who sign up. Another goal of ours is to figure out a way to move keyboarding instruction from
the junior high level to the fourth grade level. The elementary library has two older computers.
These computers are used for Accelerated Reader; a reading program that personalizes reading
practice to each student’s current level and assesses students’ reading with four types of quizzes.
We recently upgraded to the online version of Accelerated Reader, which has allowed students to
utilize the program to its fullest extent and has greatly expand the reading quizzes available to
students.
The high school computer labs are utilized by all classes for research, reports, projects,
presentations and Kansas State Assessments. The older lab is also the business education
classroom and is used for all computer classes. A current goal of USD 225 is to develop a
district technology curriculum that can be used to assess students at all grade levels in the use of
technology. This plan will be based on current ISTE standards and will include a specific
Business Education curriculum which will mirror future common core competencies.
The Industrial Arts program has eight computers that are networked and internet
accessible. These are used for research, reports, and word processing, but they are primarily
used for our AutoCad program. The English/Yearbook department has seven computers used for
research, reports and word processing; these are also equipped with Yearbook publishing and
photo-editing software.
Both schools also have interactive whiteboard technology that can be used by teachers
and students to enhance the learning experience. In addition, all teachers have access to
projectors and document cameras to augment their instruction. In 2005-2006, the school
purchased the eInstruction system for nine classrooms. eInstruction is an interactive hardware
and software system which allows teachers to create and deliver course-relevant questions and
quizzes. The activities available on this system are directly linked to state standards and student
performance is tracked and reported.
USD 225 has made great strides in the past years in an attempt to improve technology.
However, we recognize that there are ever-changing needs that we must act on in the near future
to improve the learning environment for our students. Future plans include increasing the
availability of workstations for our students by placing more student-use computers in each
classroom and creating an additional lab in the high school. IDL (Interactive Distance Learning)
is available to send and receive courses in two locations at the high school. This option is
available to the community as well as the students and staff. As new equipment is purchased for
specific upgrades, the “old” is currently being recycled to maximize the use of our existing
technology.
Evaluating Curriculum Integration
The USD 225 school improvement committee is currently reviewing the means in which
we evaluate how technology is being used in the classroom. Our school improvement plan will
include our methods of establishing our baseline data to insure that learner outcomes are being
met by our students.
We will continue to use our current technology (SuccessMaker, Accelerated Reader,
STAR, Study Island) to gather data to assess students in regards to benchmarks. Following
implementation of a district wide technology curriculum that ties to our school improvement
plan, we will begin collecting data that will provide us with a means of assessing the
effectiveness of our technology integration.
USD 225 will continue to promote our newer technology, including interactive
whiteboards, smart pens, and tablets as a way to engage our learners. In order to effectively do
this, we will also need to incorporate more advanced training for our teachers.